Page 4 of You Are My Every Reason

“I would be,” Rich responds. His sister raises an eyebrow, and I’m not sure what he means with his answer.

“Okay.” The girl nods. “Well, I’m Willa. His twin.” They’re twins? “That was my husband, Vasily. Everyone calls him King.” She keeps going. “There is no place safer on this island than with these two. I can promise you that.” Willa gives me a big smile that puts me at ease a little.

“Nothing is going to harm you, dollface.” I rest my head on Rich’s chest, again wanting to believe him, but I don’t have much hope. I let my eyes fall closed, the feeling of exhaustion creeping in on me. I want to fight it.

I must doze off for a second because when I flutter my eyes back open, Rich is sliding me into the back seat of an SUV, keeping me tucked into him the whole time.

“It’s all right,” he reassures me again. “If you want to sleep, you can. I’ve got you.” I press my face into his neck, breathing him in as I let the exhaustion pull me under.

ChapterFour

RICH

Ifeel her whole body relax in my hold, her breathing slowing and growing deeper. She’s trusting me to watch over her. I’m a mix of fucked-up emotions right now. I want to beat the shit out of whoever terrifies her and roar with a smugness over the fact she is trusting me enough to fall asleep in my arms.

“She’s terrified,” my sister whispers from the front seat. “She hasn’t said a word about what happened to her?” I shake my head no. Willa nods and sits back in her seat.

The drive back up to our house feels long. Our family estate sits at the top of a hill overlooking most of the island. It was turned over to Willa and me after our father's death. The place is massive, our family having come from old money. Dirty money, I’m sure. My father was a piece of shit. At one time, he ran this island until King took it from him.

King pulls up the long driveway and under the carport. Willa opens the back door for me so I don’t have to release my hold on my girl.

My girl. The claim on her in my mind is without hesitation. The thought comes as easily as my next breath. I don’t question it. Not when it feels so right, and I know the last thing I want to do is let her go.

As gently as I can, I slip from the back seat. King opens the side door that leads into the kitchen. When I walk in, I see Uncle West and Teddy there. West is sitting at the kitchen island while Teddy, his fiancée and my sister’s best friend, is at the stove cooking.

Teddy came to live here years ago with her mom. They moved into the guesthouse. My father had hired her mother to run the estate since he was gone most of the time and Willa and I were still teens at the time.

Our father needed someone to keep an eye on us. Teddy and her mother became like family to Willa and me with how often our father was away. We all hated it when he’d come home. The house would go from a loving environment to a coldish hell as soon as he stepped through the door. Thank God we no longer have to worry about that anymore.

West stands; Teddy’s eyes go wide seeing that I’m carrying a girl in my arms. Likely equally as surprised that I’m even home. I haven’t been coming home most nights anymore. Willa presses her finger to her mouth, signaling for them to be quiet. They both nod.

I keep moving through the kitchen and down the hallway to the front corridor to take the stairs up to my room. The house has three wings; my sister and I share one. Willa stays right behind me the whole way, opening my bedroom door that is across from hers.

When I enter my room, I carry my girl over to my bed. Willa hurries over and pulls the blanket back for me. I gently lay her down. A small sigh leaves her when I pull the blanket over her. I stand there and stare down at her. Her hair that was dark when I’d pulled her out of the water now has dried enough that I can see a reddish tint to it. It's starting to turn wavy as well.

Willa taps my elbow to get my attention. For a moment, I completely forgot about her and everything else. She nods toward the door. I agree, reluctantly following her back out into the hallway. I don’t close my bedroom doors all the way. I leave one slightly ajar, my hand resting on the top of it so it stays open a couple of inches, but my body blocks anyone from seeing inside.

That way if she wakes up, she’ll see I’m still right here, but no one can see her. My room isn’t small. It’s a massive suite that I’m sure would rival most people's condos in the city. I don’t want her to wake and think she’s all alone in a big space, knowing that could be overwhelming.

I see Teddy coming down the hallway toward us with West and King. What is this, a family fucking meeting? It dawns on me that with Teddy engaged to my uncle and now King married to my sister, it is a fucking family meeting. It’s crazy how things can change so damn quickly.

“Who is that? Is she okay?” Teddy is the first one to speak, which isn’t shocking. The house tends to move around her. She’s a natural caretaker and has been since she came to live here. It’s her that makes family dinner every night and fusses over everyone. I'm sure she’s ready to do the same over the girl in my bedroom.

Not happeningis my hidden thought. A jealousy I don’t understand is gripping me. "We don't know much," Willa answers as I try to get my shit under control. Everyone wants to help, and that isn't a bad thing, but I don't want anyone near her. She’s mine.

"All right." Teddy looks at me. "You tell me what, if anything, you need, and I'll handle it."

"Thanks," I respond but don't ask for anything. Teddy glances between all of us.

"Willa, why don't you and I go heat up some soup and get a few drinks?" I’m silently thanking Teddy for suggesting it, knowing she’s trying to give me some alone time with my girl.

"I'm not allowed to cook," my sister responds. Yeah, because she'll hurt herself or burn the place down. Teddy gives her a look. "Oh," she huffs. "Fine, I'll go." Teddy grabs her arm, pulling her out of the room. There are whispers drifting down the hallway as they get farther away, leaving me with King and West.

"I have Anton sniffing around to see what information he can get. I didn't alert any of my other men about what was going on at the docks," King informs me. Anton is his right-hand. I get along with him pretty well and have trained with him a few times before. "With us knowing nothing, I trust no one." King's words aren't surprising, and I'm thankful in the moment that he's a paranoid bastard. Not that I blame him. It's not as though everything at the docks is on the up and up.

"I got the place on lockdown," West adds. I’m sure his ass does with the tech he has at his fingertips. Most of the equipment he uses is his own creation. I’m grateful to them. Neither of them should be helping me, really. I’ve been at odds with both of them.

“Thanks,” I tell them.

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